Verizon Planning Its Own App Store

The main idea: Verizon wants to be the company connecting its customers with apps -- not necessarily its handset partners. And it wants to avoid becoming an even dumber pipe.

Depending on how it's set up, this could clash with gadget makers' plans.

App stores are an increasingly important sales pitch for gadget makers, especially among those competing with Apple in the smartphone market. Apple announced today that its customers downloaded 1.5 billion apps in the last year.

The most likely result: People using smartphones like BlackBerries and Microsoft Windows Mobile-powered devices will still gravitate toward the manufacturers' app stores, while people using "dumb" phones like cheap flip phones will use Verizon's store.